8:30 a.m. update: Man, woman arrested after armed robberies in Chico

CHICO — Two people were arrested after two armed robberies in Chico Tuesday night.

Lissette M. Gomez, 20, and Joshua R. Gomez, 24, both of Orland, were arrested and booked into Butte County Jail for multiple robberies, according to a Chico Police report.

It was determined that Lissette was the driver of the vehicle in both Tuesday robberies, and Joshua Gomez the suspect. Chico police are investigating if the pair were involved in other Chico area robberies.

The Chico Police Department received a hold-up alert out of the Tower Market on East Lassen Avenue at about 9:45 p.m. Tuesday.

While driving to the incident, a Chico police officer noticed a vehicle near Kings Canyon Way, which was near the scene of the robbery, Sgt. Scott Ruppel told the Enterprise-Record. He reportedly noticed that the passengers — a man and a woman — were acting suspiciously. The car was stopped in the 600 block of Eaton Road and the people in the vehicle were reportedly still moving around and reaching toward the back.

Officers allegedly found indicia that linked the man and woman in the car to the Tower Market robbery,.

The items seen were enough to detain the pair, Ruppel said.

During the alleged robbery, a single armed suspect entered the business and demanded money. He was said to be wearing a gray sweatshirt and a bandanna over his face.

At about 7:20 p.m., the Chico Police Department received an alert of a hold-up alarm at the Jackpot Foodmart at the corner of West Sixth and Walnut streets.

The clerk, who was alone in the store, told officers a man came in, flashed a semiautomatic handgun and demanded money, Ruppel said at the scene. It took about 20 seconds for the man to allegedly rob the store of an undisclosed amount of money before he fled in an unknown direction.

Officers responded, but were unable to locate the suspect.

The alleged robber in that incident was described as a Hispanic male about 5-foot-8 and of medium build. He was wearing a blue jacket and some type of scarf or bandanna covering his face, Ruppel said.

A similar robbery occurred Dec. 18 at the Valero gas station at West First and Walnut streets.

During that incident, a man matching the description of the alleged suspect in Tuesday's robbery fled before officers arrived.

It's still unknown if all the incidents are related, but police are looking into it.

It's not uncommon for a suspect — especially if they're successful — to continue before he or she decides to leave the area or police catch up to them, Ruppel said after the Jackpot robbery.

Chico police are also investigating robberies at Next Door Pharmacy on Cohasset Road, Subway Sandwiches on West Sacramento Avenue, and Reliance Gas station on Mangrove Avenue.